Staff members of the Department of Culture and Humanities

Name, Job TitleResearch AreaMain teaching subjects
Research Content

Toshiyuki SANO, ProfessorCultural AnthropologyCultural Anthropology of Everyday Life, Seminar on Ethnography,
Fieldwork Practicum, Seminar on Fieldwork in English
Toshiyuki SANO studies how culture is affected by different
relationships between people and people, people and objects
(relevant to food, clothing and shelter) as well as people
and nature in a cultural anthropologic manner through everyday
life (examples from places such as the US, Japan and Southeast Asia).

Noriko SUZUKI, ProfessorEarly Modern Japanese History, Medical Social History,
Women’s HistoryWomen’s Lifestyle History, Medical Social and Cultural History,
Seminar on Culture and Humanities History
Noriko SUZUKI studies Japanese culture and humanities
history from the Edo Period to the Meiji and Taisho Periods
through physical issues including medical care, sanitation
and beauty. For example, she studies historical changes in
the social treatment of patients with infectious diseases
such as tuberculosis and Hansen’s disease as well as changes
in the sanitation environment which laid the foundation for
the popularization of cosmetics and dieting, through analysis
of various historical documents such as medical papers,
literary works, “ukiyoe” pictures, women’s magazines and newspapers.

Takashi NODA, ProfessorDisaster Sociology, Organizational Sociology,
Social Crisis Management TheorySocial Systems, Seminar on Social Systems,
Information Management and Systems of Lifestyles
His major interest is to understand and clarify risks which
exist everywhere in everyday life as cultural phenomena
(not as actual risks as most people assume).
He insists that risks cannot be taken in a culture which
tolerates lies and does not accept failure.

Etsuko MATSUOKA, ProfessorCultural Anthropology, Medical Anthropology,
Gender StudiesCultural Study of Gender, Seminar on Cultural Study of
Gender, Family and Gender Studies
Whether or not to have children is a very important decision
for women, and also can be a double-edged sword. It may be
difficult for women to think about their own lifestyle, career,
health and relationship with men without considering whether
or not to have children. Her research involves comparing
different regions including Asia in relation to the culture of
women deciding whether or not to have children, and finding
satisfactory ways for women to have, or forgo having, children.

Miho MITSUNARI, ProfessorGender Law, History of Gender, History of European (especially German) LawLegal and Cultural History of Gender, European Women’s
Lifestyle History, Seminar on Legal and Cultural History of Gender
International society is undergoing significant changes towards
achieving gender equality. Her research involves studying and
comparing the history of issues such as women’s participation
in the decision-making process, assistance in sustaining a good
balance between work and family, fairness in labor (the principle
of same wages for same work, care work), sexuality as dignity
(LGBTI), the elimination of violence towards women
(domestic violence, sexual harassment, rape), reconstruction of
close relationships, and reproductive rights (right to
self-determination, medical assistance in reproduction).

Atsushi ABE, Associate ProfessorWelfare Society, Volunteering, Civil SocietyLife and Welfare Studies, Seminar on Life and Welfare,
Welfare for the Elderly
Atsushi ABE studies attitudes towards welfare for people (welfare
outlook) and towards welfare-related policies through questionnaire
surveys. He plans to make international comparisons between
Japan and overseas countries (Northern Europe, China, etc.)
in the future.

Kaori ANDO, Associate ProfessorSocial Psychology, Cultural Psychology, Environmental Social PsychologyCultural Study of Human Relationships, Seminar on Human
Relationships, Reading of Foreign Literature on Cultural Study
of Human Relationships
Her two main research areas are considering the differences in
human relationships by culture, and searching for standard factors
of environmental consideration behavior. In considering the
difference in human relationships by culture, she studies the
differences between the Eastern cultural sphere including Japan
and the Western cultural sphere, as well as the actual meaning of
collectivism. In searching for standard factors on environment
consideration behavior, she tries to answer questions on
environmental consideration behavior from the viewpoint of how
the number of people who take action in considering the environment can be increased.

Takashi IGUCHI, Associate ProfessorMedical Sociology, Family and Care Sociology, Clinical SociologyStudies in Family Relations, Studies on Family Issues, Studies on
Social Research, Seminar on Family Relations
The core of our society is established on the premise that people
are those who can smoothly communicate thoughts with words
and who can perform self-control. However, this premise does
not necessarily apply to those with dementia or disabilities.
Using materials such as field work and videos, he studies the
relationships between those having dementia and their families
as well as other care providers, and also mental conflict which
may arise from those relationships, and tries to answer how a
society in which various, different people live together happily can be established.

Hiroshi OTSUKA, Associate ProfessorLaw, Sociology of Law, Consumer LawConsumer Law, Seminar on Consumer Law, Lifestyle and Law
Hiroshi OTSUKA studies how the law is utilized to lead society
in a better direction. Many people may think of trials only
involving solving problems, but they actually also serve as
an important tool for reforming society. For example, he
tries to extract common features of trials which lead to the
systematic reform, including so-called fixed-number lawsuits
about one-vote differences and lawsuits about the inheritance of illegitimate children.

Akiko YAMASAKI, Associate Professor

Visual Culture Studies, Visual Representation and Gender,
Image Generation and Social System Visual Culture Studies, Seminar on Visual Culture Studies,
Attire and Gender
There is an overflow of visual images in our daily life.
Visual images in TV, movies, comics, pictures, art, signs, buildings,
streets, and even landscapes express their meanings and provide
emotions by being created or extracted manually. Visual culture
research involves studying the role of those images in society and deciphering their meanings.

Misa AOKI, Assistant Professor

Agricultural Economics Life Economics
As our eating lifestyle becomes more plentiful, the distance
between the producer and the consumer has increased.
This has caused various problems such as food safety and false

labeling of food. Meanwhile, there are various different activities
being carried out to prevent these problems. She studies how
these activities are approached in Japan and other Asian countries.